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BEPA

Action Programme

2010 - 2014


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BEPA Action Programme 2010-2014 2

I. GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND OBJECTIVES

BEPAs coremission is to maximise the Presidents and the Colleges policy input

and impact. Its overall priorities are driven by the Political Guidelines of the

Barroso-II Commission and geared towards their successful implementation.

More specifically, BEPA is meant to provide the President of the Commission

with background analysis, relevant feedback and strategic advice on those

issues that matter most for his second mandate. BEPAs role implies also policy

dissemination and political outreach especially among opinion formers,

experts and stakeholders.

The added value BEPA can and must generate is based on its unique position

as a service of immediate support for the President. Its comparative advantage

lies in its ability to network both inside and outside the Commission; its capacityto generate synergy and complementarity with other supporting services; and

its position as an interface between the President (and his Cabinet) and the

wider world of EU policy analysts.

The principles that will inspire its activities in the forthcoming years will be

operat iona l i ty, o rig ina lityand proact iv i ty:

Operationality means that the input coming from BEPA will be geared

towards offering: a) policy op t i onsthat are simultaneously ambitious and

realistic; b) political adv i cethat can increase the Presidents insight andstrengthen his leadership; and c) fresh l a nguagethat can help to develop a

"narrative" for the Commissions work, and d) storylines that can help the

communication with European public opinion;

Originality means that BEPA does not aim at duplicating what other

Commissions services already offer but instead carves out its own distinctive

"niche" by a) asking new quest ions, b) giving unconventional answers, c )

providing different inputs, and d) adopting cross-cutting app r o a ch e sto

policy issues, i.a. through early review of (and feedback on) policy initiatives;Proactivity means that BEPA must be able to a) ac t (and react) quickly, b)

anticipate developments and demands, c) mobilize internal and external

know-how, and d) deliver relevant, timely and forward-looking analyses to

feed the President and his aides well beyond the regular and foreseeable

policy agenda.

In other words, operationality, originality and proactivity should come to

represent the peculiar "sof tware"BEPA applies to the issues that are expected

to be on the Presidents agenda notably at the stage of College orientationdebates and participation in Commissioners Groups as appropriate.


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II. METHODS AND INSTRUMENTS

To this end, appropriate working methods are required, and resources have to

be used accordingly.

To start with, rather than standing semi-permanent groups of experts forseparate policy areas, a single broad poo l of "the best and the brightest"

men and women from various disciplines and professional backgrounds will

be established. These external advisers and consultants to the President will

be mobilised "on call", depending on policy priorities, with a view to a)

bringing together in "variable geometry" formats various yet

complementary types of expertise, and b) exploring unconventional policy

options.

Secondly, dedicated ta sk fo rc e swill be created: these should be small in size,limited in time, and focussed on producing specific advice and outcomes.

They could involve some of the external Advisers from the "pool" as well as

other relevant experts from inside and outside the Commission.

Thirdly, special attention will be devoted to mainstreaming BEPAs Visitors

Programmewith a view to a) attracting relevant and high-level expertise, b)

reinforcing the intellectual firepower of the service, and c) widening and

enriching its thematic scope. In all its activities, BEPA will endeavour to keep a

gende r - ba l an cedapproach.

A fourth key instrument in the further development of BEPA activities will be

network ing, crucial as it is for both spreading the "word" and collecting

additional expertise and feedback. It will take two distinct yet

complementary directions:

a) internalnetwork ingwill include liaising more systematically with the

existing Foresight and Strategy Units in the Commission Directorates-

General in order to identify ways in which relevant expertise can best be

brought to bear. More generally, searching, finding, and tapping intoavailable talent and useful knowledge inside the C ommission will be a

BEPA priority;

b) ex terna lnetworkingis crucial for BEPAs outreach mission and activities:

it will include ad hoc projects with independent and institutional think

tanks, policy research centres and individual experts in Brussels proper,

across Europe and in other relevant countries as well as contacts with

government-related planning units and cells (inside and outside Europe).


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III. DRIVERS AND DELIVERABLES

Within this framework, of course, a high degree of flexibility in setting objectives

and adapting activities to new demands will be maintained over time. In the

more immediate future, however, BEPA will in particular:

Assist the President and his Cabinet in the framework ofEU 2020and the

wider process of ec onom ic re fo rm in Europe by launching a strategic

reflection on the longer term implications that current (and forthcoming)

policy developments may trigger. Such reflection will include possible new

ways of fos ter ing economic innovat ion and susta inable growth in a fast

changing economic and technological environment, options and scenarios

for delivering them, and their overall impact on Europes social fabric;

Provide constructive approaches to the budget rev iewexercise and thepreparatory work for the Mu lt ia nnua l Financ ia l Fram ew ork.

Identify ways to maximise the role of the EU in the global stage in light of the

Lisbon Treaty and the growing importance not only of such "structural"

external policies as trade, aid, and enlargement itself, but also of the externa l

dimension ofin terna lcommon policies in international fora starting with the

G 20 and in the framework of existing and future "strate g ic p a rtne rships"

with key world players. Constant attention and spec ific initiatives will also be

devoted to monitoring and highlighting the broader g eo p o lit ic a l t rend sthat

are shaping international relations and affecting, in particular, Europes

position and action.

Participate with targeted initiatives and distinctive contributions in c lose

cooperation with the SPS to the Commissions collec tive effort to art iculate

fresh langua ge to b et te r co mm unic a te the EU. This will involve i.a.:

a) estab l ish ing a new own European Young LeadersProgramme to

attract to Brussels emerging personalities from all walks of life, thus

creating opportunities to reach out to unconventional audiences;b) linking up w ith p ro fessio na ls a nd exp e rts in the d om a in o fpol i t ica l

commun i ca t i onin order to collec t feedback and suggestions; c) fostering

contacts with the world ofa rt and c u lture, and proposing new formats for

communicating at cross-national level.

Feed the President and the Cabinet with new idea s a nd "pistes d e rflec t ion "

about policy development which may trigger new initiatives. These could

include:


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a) at inst itut ional level: organising a brainstorming session

(complementary to the already planned conference on the impact of

the Lisb o n Trea tyon the Commissions competences and work) on the

possible scenarios and "unintended consequences" of its implementation,

trying to imagine how the EUwould look and operate, as a system, in 2013

and beyond;

b) at soc ia llevel: analysing in depth what could be the impact of the

present economic crisis on European societies, in terms ofinnovat ion(new

employment opportunities/trends), cohes ion (immigration/integration),

and also degrada t i on (poverty/violence). Additional angles to be

adopted are an investigation of the notion of "well being" and its

operational spin-offs, and a reassessment of EU policies in light of "inter-

generational fairness", with an emphasis on their long rather than short

term implications; and

c) at ec onom i c level: examining possible policy options for the way in

which in terconnect iv i tycan be promoted both inside and outside the

Union (possibly starting with the provision of natural gas). More generally,

the notion and the feasibility of an EU-own ind ustria l po lic yin the legal

and economic context of the forthcoming decade including the

promotion of the "green" sector, a more rational use of finite resources,

and the potential of ICT will be explored and analysed, with a view toproviding tentative solutions for a new phase in the development of the

Single Market.

IV. BEPA OWN COMPETENCE

BEPA has some spec ific responsibilities for which it is "c he f-d e-f ile" in co-operation with relevant Commission services, namely:

Dialogue with Churches, religious communities and philosophical non-

confessional organisation. With the introduction of art.17 in the TFEU, the

dialogue has become an integral part of EU primary law. The EU institutions

now need to ensure that the dialogue is "open, transparent and regular". The

most important part of the work has included receiving, visiting and assisting

the representatives of religions, churches and communities of conviction. This

has enabled them to raise their concerns and questions, as well as presenttheir contribution to the European integration process;


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Ethics in Sciences and new Technologies. The goal of the Commission is to

strike a ba lance between ethical and soc io-cultural diversity while respecting

internationally recognised fundamental values. Within this framework, BEPA

will continue its activities in the field of Ethics in Sciences and new

Technologies, notably by:

- providing the sec retariat of the European Group on Ethics in Sciences

and New Technologies (EGE) and ensuring the dissemination of its work;

- providing the secretariat of and giving impulse to the EC international

dialogue on bioethics, where the EGE, the Chairs of 15 non-EU National

Ethics Counc ils from 5 continents, and the Chairs of the EU 27 National

Ethics Councils (together with representatives of international

organisations) share information, create synergies and discuss the main

bioethics topics;

- providing the sec retariat of the Commission Inter-service platform on

Ethics and EU policies, coordinating Commission services in the field of

ethics, and monitoring that ethics and respect of fundamental values

are properly considered in the policy design and implementation;

- acting as EC delegate in meetings on bioethics and ethics of science

organised by relevant third parties.

Chief Scientific Adviser Office:The appointment of a Chief Scientific Adviser(CSA) is part of a fundamental review of the way in which European

institutions access and use scientific advice. The primary responsibility of the

CSA office is to provide high level, independent and timely scientific advice

on a wide-range of science-related issue throughout all stages of policy

development and delivery. The CSA will provide such advice direc tly to the

President, including regular updates on major scientific and technological

developments which may have an influence on EU policies and the dec ision-

making process. While the CSA is direc tly attached to the President, s/he will

receive all necessary administrative support by BEPA.